Concerto for Orchestra No. 2 (Stucky)

Last updated

The Second Concerto for Orchestra is a concerto for orchestra by the American composer Steven Stucky. The work was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic while Stucky was their composer-in-residence for the inaugural season of the Walt Disney Concert Hall. It was completed in 2003 and was first performed on March 12, 2004, with the conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen leading the Los Angeles Philharmonic. [1] The piece was awarded the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Music. [2] [3]

Contents

Composition

Background

Stucky conceived the piece as a celebration of his musical influences. Thus, the work freely references passages from many previous classical works. [4] In 2003, Stucky elaborated:

The first movement, for example, echoes a texture from the first movement of Ravel's Piano Concerto in G (the two-handed one), as well as Oliver Knussen's Flourish with Fireworks and in turn the piece Knussen himself was honoring, Stravinsky's Fireworks . Later in the movement, there are admiring glances at orchestral textures from two Sibelius works, En saga and the first movement of the Third Symphony. The second movement, too, has souvenirs from Debussy's La Mer , Brahms's E-flat clarinet (or viola) sonata, Stravinsky's Petrushka , and other works. The finale even borrows briefly from an earlier orchestral work of mine, Son et lumière. [...] What does this all mean for listeners and performers — for the "end users" of the piece? Surely not that they should approach my new concerto as if it were a treasure hunt or a music history lecture, straining to catch musical souvenirs as they go by. (A good way to ruin a concert!) Instead, I hope that knowing something about my private hopes and allegiances can help others feel the security and freedom to listen and play their very best. [4]

Stucky also assigned letters of the alphabet to pitches in order to form a musical code in the first movement. [5] He wrote that the first movement "enshrines essential personal loyalties, using musical code to refer to the Los Angeles Philharmonic, my musical home for almost sixteen years, and to many of the people most important to me there." [4]

Structure

The Second Concerto for Orchestra has a duration of approximately twenty-five minutes and is composed in three movements:

  1. Overture (with Friends)
  2. Variations
  3. Finale

Instrumentation

The work is scored for three flutes (second doubling alto flute, third doubling piccolo, three oboes (third doubling English horn), three clarinets (third doubling bass clarinet), two bassoons, contrabassoon, four French horns, four trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (anvil, bass drum, bongo drums, chimes, Chinese cymbal, glockenspiel, large triangle, Latin cowbells, marimba, snare drum, suspended cymbals, tambourine, tamtam, tom-toms, vibraphone, wood blocks, xylophone, whip), harp, piano, celesta, and strings. [5]

Reception

Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Times called the concerto a "colorful, delight-bringing score" and praised the references to other classical works, commenting, "The strongest impression throughout the concerto — which has a richly expressive, exquisitely tinted variations movement in the center and a rollicking final movement — is of Stucky's sumptuous ease with the orchestra. He makes the transition from Ravel's sound world to Salonen's not only natural but fresh, the way new blooms always are. This is music of eternal springtime." [1] Reviewing the premiere recording by Lan Shui and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Richard Whitehouse of Gramophone praised Stucky's "fastidious orchestral sense" and added, "those looking for contemporary music that is approachable but never facile will find undoubted rewards here." [6]

Discography

A recording of the Second Concerto for Orchestra performed by the National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic, conducted by David Alan Miller, was released June 2018 and was nominated for a Grammy Award in the field of "Best Orchestral Performance." [7] An additional recording of the Second Concerto for Orchestra, performed by Evelyn Glennie and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra under conductor Lan Shui, was released April 27, 2010 through BIS Records and features Stucky's other orchestral works Spirit Voices and Pinturas de Tamayo . [6] [8]

Related Research Articles

The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from July through September. Gustavo Dudamel is the current Music Director, Esa-Pekka Salonen is Conductor Laureate, Zubin Mehta is Conductor Emeritus, and Susanna Mälkki is Principal Guest Conductor. John Adams is the orchestra's current Composer-in-Residence.

Oliver Knussen

Stuart Oliver Knussen was a British composer and conductor.

Esa-Pekka Salonen

Esa-Pekka Salonen is a Finnish orchestral conductor and composer. He is principal conductor and artistic advisor of the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, conductor laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and music director of the San Francisco Symphony.

Leila Bronia Josefowicz is an American-Canadian classical violinist.

Steven Stucky

Steven Edward Stucky was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer.

Spirit Voices is a concerto for percussion and orchestra in seven movements by the American composer Steven Stucky. The work was jointly commissioned by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and the Aspen Music Festival for percussionist Evelyn Glennie. It was first performed by soloist Evelyn Glennie the Singapore Symphony Orchestra under conductor Lan Shui November 14, 2003.

Pinturas de Tamayo is an orchestral composition in five movements by the American composer Steven Stucky. The work was commissioned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, who premiered the work on March 28, 1996, under the conductor Michael Gielen in Symphony Center, Chicago. The piece is inspired by the paintings of the Mexican artist Rufino Tamayo.

The Piano Concerto is a concerto for solo piano and orchestra in three movements by the Finnish composer Esa-Pekka Salonen. The work was jointly commissioned by the New York Philharmonic, the BBC, the NDR Symphony Orchestra, and Radio France. It was premiered February 1, 2007 in Avery Fisher Hall, New York City, with Salonen conducting the pianist Yefim Bronfman and the New York Philharmonic. Salonen dedicated the piece to Yefim Bronfman.

Nyx is a symphonic poem by the Finnish composer Esa-Pekka Salonen. The work was jointly commissioned by Radio France, the Barbican Centre, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, and the Finnish Broadcasting Company. It was premiered February 19, 2011 in the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris, with Salonen conducting the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. The piece is titled after the Goddess Nyx from Greek mythology.

L.A. Variations is an orchestral composition by the Finnish composer Esa-Pekka Salonen. The work was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, of which Salonen was then music director. It was first performed at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, January 16, 1997, with Salonen conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The piece is dedicated to the orchestra, about which Salonen remarked, "I wrote LA Variations specifically for the players of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. I'm very proud of the virtuosity and power of my orchestra."

Wing on Wing is a single-movement composition for two sopranos and orchestra by the Finnish composer Esa-Pekka Salonen. The work was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic for their inaugural season at the Walt Disney Concert Hall and was premiered June 5, 2004 by the orchestra under Salonen. The piece is dedicated to the architect Frank Gehry, the acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota, and the L.A. Philharmonic CEO Deborah Borda.

Foreign Bodies is an orchestral composition in three movements by the Finnish composer Esa-Pekka Salonen. The work was commissioned by the Finnish Broadcasting Company and was first performed at the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival on August 12, 2001 by the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra under the conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste.

The Concerto for Two Flutes and Orchestra is a composition for two flutes and orchestra by the American composer Steven Stucky. The work was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, for which Stucky was formerly composer-in-residence and then New Music Adviser. The piece was composed from October through December 1994 and was given its world premiere in Los Angeles by the Los Angeles Philharmonic under the conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen on February 23, 1995.

The Cello Concerto No. 2 is the second cello concerto by the Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg. It was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic in June 2013 to fill the planned premiere date of Oliver Knussen's then delayed Cello Concerto. The work was first performed in the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, on October 18, 2013 by the Finnish cellist Anssi Karttunen and the Los Angeles Philharmonic under the direction of Esa-Pekka Salonen.

Fresco is an orchestral composition by the Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg. The work was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Its world premiere was given in Los Angeles on March 12, 1998 by the Los Angeles Philharmonic under the direction of Esa-Pekka Salonen, to whom the piece is dedicated.

Dreamwaltzes is an orchestral composition by the American composer Steven Stucky. The work was commissioned by the Minnesota Orchestra for their annual Sommerfest series with support from the Jerome Foundation. The piece was completed in April 1986 and its world premiere was given by the Minnesota Orchestra under the direction of Leonard Slatkin on July 17, 1986. It is dedicated to the violinist Sonya Monosoff and Carl Pancaldo. The piece brought Stucky to prominence in the contemporary classical community and remains one of his most popular compositions.

Sculpture is an orchestral composition by the Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg. The music was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic with support from the Koussevitzky Music Foundation to celebrate the orchestra's inaugural season at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Its world premiere was given by the Los Angeles Philharmonic under the direction of Esa-Pekka Salonen on October 6, 2005.

Parada is an orchestral composition by the Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg. The piece was composed for the music festival Related Rocks which celebrates the works of Lindberg and related composers. Its world premiere was given at The Anvil, Basingstoke on February 6, 2002 by the Philharmonia Orchestra under the direction of Esa-Pekka Salonen, to whom the work is dedicated.

Karawane is a composition for chorus and orchestra by the Finnish composer Esa-Pekka Salonen. The work was jointly commissioned by the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich, the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic with support from the philanthropist Marie-Josée Kravis, the Bamberg Symphony, and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. It was first performed by the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich and the Zürcher Sing-Akademie conducted by Lionel Bringuier in the Tonhalle, Zürich, on September 10, 2014. The piece is set to the eponymous poem by the German author and Dadaist Hugo Ball.

A percussion concerto is a type of musical composition for a percussion soloist and a large ensemble, such as a concert band or orchestra. Two notable figures in the genre are the percussionists Colin Currie and Evelyn Glennie, who have separately commissioned and premiered numerous entrees to the repertoire. Two common subsets of the percussion concerto are the timpani concerto and the marimba concerto.

References

  1. 1 2 Swed, Mark (March 15, 2004). "Sounds of eternal spring: Composer Steven Stucky's Second Concerto is a lush, tailored fit for Disney". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved April 4, 2015.
  2. ↑ Child, Fred (April 5, 2005). "Steven Stucky Wins Pulitzer Prize for Music". NPR . Retrieved April 4, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Pulitzer Prizes for Letters, Drama and Music". The New York Times . 2005. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 Stucky, Steven (October 2003). Coming Home: On Writing a Second Concerto for Orchestra. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
  5. 1 2 Anderson-Bazzoli, Christopher (March 2007). "About the piece: Second Concerto For Orchestra". Los Angeles Philharmonic . Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
  6. 1 2 Whitehouse, Richard (October 2010). "Stucky Pinturas de Tamayo: Stucky's attractive yet challenging orchestral works are worth investigating". Gramophone . Retrieved May 23, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Orchestral Music - RUGGLES, C. / STUCKY, S. / HARBISON, J. (National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic, D.A. Miller) - 8.559836". www.naxos.com. Retrieved 2019-03-03.
  8. ↑ Stucky – Pinturas de Tamayo (CD liner). BIS Records. 2010. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.